The Fayette Samaritans need

your help. The 11-year-old charitable organization is in desperate need

of a home of its own. It's about to lose its current donated space.

The Samaritans was formed in

1991 by several county churches to serve local citizens in need of food,

clothes, or help with a utility bill. The churches discovered that some

people were going from church to church in scam activities. Sending people

to one site where they would be accurately screened would serve the needy

and send the greedy on their way.

The Samaritans have grown to

the point of serving 68 families just in the past three weeks. With so

many families losing jobs, this need will only grow.

The first service site was

in the back of Fayette DFACS, which needed to expand last year, and the

current service site was a suite of offices in Fayetteville, loaned to

them for a year. The year is now up.

Here is the part where you

can help. If each family in Fayette County would make a onetime donation

of $10, the Samaritans' most immediate need would be met. They would be

able to have a home of their own. Because all workers are volunteers,

the operating expense is only 1 percent of its budget. The organization

is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

"We simply need to own

a site ourselves," said Charles Charping, director of projects. "If

we could purchase a building or even a house that we could adapt to our

needs, we could concentrate on just serving our clients.

"I have carefully considered

the square footage we need, and anything between 2,400 to 3,000 would

serve our needs for some time to come," he said.

Two offices requiring 100 square

feet each for interviews would be included in this amount, 400 square

feet would hold children's and adult clothing, 144 square feet would be

a reception area, and the rest would be the food pantry and furniture

storage. An opening to allow delivery trucks would be needed, and a door

for pickup by clients needs to be separate from having to go through the

reception area.

Indeed, they also need more

in staffing of the charity's food pantry and clothes closet. Because specific

needs change month to month, a notice will appear the first week of each

month in The Citizen letting everyone know the kinds of canned goods or

clothing needed at that time.

Your tax-deductible donation

may be sent to The Fayette Samaritans, P.O. Box 1071, Fayetteville, GA

30214. The phone number is 770-719-2707.

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